Chun Tao rubbed her hands excitedly, her eyes sparkling: "Miss, you are really amazing! How did you know that Liu would be desperate?"
Chen Weiwan picked up the red gold and jade bracelet on the dressing table and turned it towards the morning light. The plum blossom pattern on the inside of the jade bracelet was faintly visible in the light: "Greed is insatiable. She has been eyeing the general's family property for more than ten years. Now that she can't get the key to the storehouse, she has to take a risk." The jade bracelet poked her wrist bone, reminding her of the letter sent by the Seventh Prince's Mansion last night. It only said "At the coming-of-age ceremony, the king is looking forward to it." The faint pine wood fragrance between the ink words seemed to still linger on the tip of her nose.
At this moment, in the study of the Seventh Prince's Mansion, Xiao Yu was playing with the Langya Mountain topographic map that Shen Weiwan had sent him. Upon hearing that Liu had been imprisoned in the death row, he threw the map onto the rosewood table, making a "pa" sound, and laughed meaningfully: "This Shen Weiwan is like a she-wolf protecting her cubs, her claws are sharp and sharp."
The personal guard bowed and asked, "Your Highness, since Liu is already imprisoned, does the Second Prince need..."
"Don't worry about him." Xiao Yu stood up and walked to the window, gazing towards the west wing of the General's Mansion. The eaves of Songyun Hall were faintly visible in the morning mist. "I'm more curious about what she's going to perform at Shen Ruorou's coming-of-age ceremony." He paused, then added, "Go to the storehouse and get the pair of oriental pearl hairpins and four loads of silk. I'm going to attend in person."
The guard was stunned: "Your Highness used to hate these noble ladies' banquets, why..."
"It's a different time now." Xiao Yu thought of Shen Weiwan's eyes, which shone like a cunning fox when she tilted her head to pretend to be innocent. A gentle arc appeared on the corner of his mouth. "Let's go see what surprise that little clever ghost has prepared that will make the whole capital laugh out loud."
Chen Weiwan was unaware of the Seventh Prince's plans. She squatted beside Shen Ruorou's wedding gown, carefully plucking the hem of her skirt with a silver hairpin. Chuntao handed her a small, fine porcelain bottle. The powder inside glowed a faint blue in the sunlight. "Miss, the fluorescent powder has been sewn under the silk thread of the phoenix embroidery, just as you instructed. It will glow whenever you move."
"Very good." Shen Weiwan nodded with satisfaction, and pointed at the makeup box, "Did you put the fake account book in?"
"It's in!" Chun Tao lowered her voice and leaned close to her ear. "The account book clearly records the amount Liu has embezzled over the years, more than ten times the actual amount! They even specifically recorded several items of gifts she gave to the Second Prince's residence. I'm sure they'll fight each other."
Chen Weiwan sneered, her fingertips tracing the delicate lotus pattern on her wedding dress: "Even if she jumps into the Yellow River, she can't wash it off." When she stood up, she caught a glimpse of the jade bracelet on her wrist in the mirror, and suddenly remembered the four words "All is fair in war" from her father's book of military strategy. The cold light in her eyes deepened a little.
Late in the night, Chen Weiwan stood alone by the window, gazing at the dimly lit lights of the prison city. She recalled the snowy night in her past life when she had been falsely accused of adultery and beaten to death at the corner gate of the General's Mansion. The feeling of the cold snowflakes falling on her face seemed to still be there. Her fingertips dug into her palm, leaving a crescent-shaped blood mark. "Liu, you owe me, and the General's Mansion, more than just the gold, silver, and jewelry in the treasury."
Chuntao brought a bowl of lotus seed soup and whispered, "Miss, the Shuntian prefect sent someone to say that Liu Shi is still crying out for justice in prison and wants to send someone to bring a case to the emperor."
"Let her scream." Chen Weiwan took the porcelain bowl, the heat of the lotus seed soup blurring the icicles on the window. "On the day of Chen Ruorou's coming-of-age ceremony, I will let her know what true devastation is."
The next day, the streets and alleys of the capital were in an uproar, and the teahouses and taverns were full of discussions:
"Have you heard? The second wife of the general's mansion was arrested by Shuntian Prefecture!"
"That's right! They colluded with the thugs from the west side of the city to rob the warehouse, and caught them red-handed! Those thugs all fell into the cesspool, covered in feces and piss, and were tied up like dumplings!"
"I've always said that Liu is no good! She used to pretend to be kind, but secretly she even colluded with foreign thieves!"
"The eldest lady is really amazing! She had it all planned long ago, digging a cesspool waiting for them! She looked stupid before, but it turns out she was just playing the pig to eat the tiger!"
Hiding in her courtyard, Shen Ruorou listened to the servants' chatter outside the window. Trembling with rage, she hurled the "Instructions for Women" to the ground, scattering its pages. She grabbed the unfinished lotus blossoms on the embroidery frame and tugged hard, the snapping sound of the threads piercing the silent room. "Chen Weiwan! You bitch! On the day of your coming-of-age ceremony, I will destroy your reputation and make you wish you were dead!" Unbeknownst to her, within her meticulously prepared wedding gown, fluorescent powder was quietly waiting to burst forth in the spotlight. And within her makeup box, the fake account books were about to drag her and Liu into an abyss of no return.
In the Seventh Prince's residence, Xiao Yu received a reply from Shen Weiwan. The letterhead contained only eight small, elegant characters: "On the day of your coming of age, I will wait for good news." He picked up his pen to reply, but only wrote "This prince will be there." Thinking of her cunning smile when she set the trap, he couldn't help but shake his head and chuckle: "This girl is getting better and better at teasing people."
The final showdown over the coming-of-age ceremony is about to unfold at the capital's most prestigious banquet for noble ladies. Armed with witnesses and evidence, Shen Weiwan lays a net of traps. Liu struggles in her death row, unaware that she's already a discarded pawn. And Shen Ruorou's meticulously planned "surprise" is just another farce in Shen Weiwan's eyes. Amidst Shen Weiwan's endlessly shady maneuvers, the skies of the capital are already swirling with the whims of revenge.
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